Opportunities Today :- August 2005 Issue

Interview with Samy Mahmoud - Tourism Counsellor, Egyptian Tourism 

 

Samy Mahmoud has recently taken the charge of the Egyptian Consulate Tourism Office in Mumbai. Our Editor Subhash Motwani caught up with Samy to find out what would be the role of the newly started Egyptian Tourism Office at World Trade Centre, Mumbai.

How long have you been in Mumbai and when did the Tourism Office commence its operations in India?
I came to Mumbai around April this year and our operations in Mumbai have started from June onwards. I am the Tourism Counsellor of the Egyptian Tourism office which belongs to the Consulate of Egypt out here. Our new Tourism Minister in Egypt Mr Maghrabi was keen to have our presence here in the Indian Market as he sees a great potential of tourists from India coming into Egypt. Already there has been an increase of travellers from India into Egypt by about 25% compared to last year and we are looking forward to having more visitors from India coming into Egypt in the coming year. This was the reason we decided to open the Tourism Office in Mumbai. 


What are your plans to make the presence of Egypt felt in the Indian market?
Firstly, we have plans to be part of all major travel fairs across India. We also plan to have our links through our tourism office with various Travel Agents and Tour Operators through their associations as well as with various airlines which fly into Egypt. We also plan to have an advertising campaign. Most Indians are aware of Egypt as a country especially for its ancient Egyptian history. What most people are unaware of is the modern Egypt - the new attractions in Egypt. Egypt is not just about Pyramids, the Sphinx, the great temples, Luxor and Aswan. Egypt has a lot more to offer to the Indian traveller as well as travellers from any country across the globe. We have several attractions in Egypt from the cultural perspective as well as from the point of view of shopping and entertainment. Egypt also has many golf courses.We also have a new product called the “Holy Family” which would attract the Christians as Jesus and Virgin Mary lived for more than 4 years in Egypt.


Shopping in Egypt is also a major attraction especially for the handicrafts and clothing. Our office out here will not only cater to the travel agents and tour operators but also the end consumer i.e. the one who wants to travel to Egypt. We plan having a website from where a visitor can download all the information he needs to know before coming to Egypt. 


How safe is Egypt as a country?
Just like India, Egypt is extremely safe as a destination. You can walk on the streets any time of the day or even late in the evening. Like the Indian people, the Egyptians too are very friendly and hospitable. The Indians will feel at home in Egypt as you find Indian food. There is also the Oberoi chain of hotel and cruises which the Indians are well aware of here in India. The Egyptian food as well is quite similar to Indian cuisine excepting the spices. 


 

What has been your experience in other countries especially in promotion of Tourism to Egypt?
Prior to India, I was in South Africa which is all together a different market. As Egypt is to the north of the African continent, the people of South Africa know Egypt quite well. The tourist traffic to Egypt from South Africa is around 25000 whereas from India it is almost double and has reached a figure of 50000 tourists this year. I am looking to doubling the number of travellers from India in 2005-06 and this can happen by working together with the Travel Agents and Tour Operators from India.

How has media, television and movies played a role in enlightening people about Egypt?
The awareness of Egypt and its history has been also featured in the National Geographic Channel recently and that has created further interest about Egypt especially the research being carried out on Tut-Ankh-Amun and the West Bank. The research was carried out to find why Tut-Ankh-Amun died so early. He died when he was just 18 years old. However, the outcomes of the research are not clear whether he was killed and it still remains a mystery.


Coming to “Bollywood”, the Indian movies are ever so popular in Egypt. Most Egyptians like Indian movies especially Amitabh Bachchan and also the Indian songs. And thru Bollywood, the Indian audience is made aware about various destinations. So we would be glad to welcome Indian Film Producers to make movies in Egypt as we have a Media City in Egypt which is a very big city with several facilities to make movies and we have many attractions which would appeal to the film audiences.


What is the best time to visit Egypt?
Egypt has four seasons - the high season starts from 1st October and extends till end of April. This is the high season especially for Europeans and we have tourists coming in from Italy, Germany, France, England and across Europe. During this time 65% of the traffic is from European countries. From July until 1st September is the summer time when we have the people from the Middle East visiting Egypt. I recommend the Indian people to visit Egypt between October and April or even if they visit now they can visit places like Alexandria, Hurghada, Sharm-el-Sheikh where they can enjoy a good vacation. In Egypt we have over 2000 kilometres of coast line with virgin beaches and good places for diving, water sports with crystal clear water, beautiful marine life with colourful fishes. For lovers of water sports, marine life and beaches, Egypt is a must visit destination.

Lastly, what similarities you find between people of India and Egypt?
Indian people look like the Egyptians. Even if I see Indians walking in the streets of Cairo, it is difficult to identify whether they are Indians or Egyptians. Even the food habits are similar except for the spices. Indian food tends to be more spicy than Egyptian food. There has been very good relationships between the Egyptians and Indians since a very long time - right from the days of Nasser and Nehru. Most Egyptian people like Indians and I am sure the Indians visiting Egypt will have a wonderful experience about our country, culture, history and will want to visit our country more than once to discover the various facets of Egypt.